Reinforced textile fabric and process of making



G. K. RIPLEY REINFORCED TEXTILE FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING 4Sheets-Sheet 1' Filed Nov. 23, 1943 .IIIIH'IEIJ XXX XXXXXXXX l xxxXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX v XXXXXXX .XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.

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REINFORCED TEXTILE FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING Filed Nov. 23, 1943 4Sheets-Sh 2 05 AC R XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX x xxxxxxxxxxx xx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxx K Mm ug 7, 1945- e. K. RIPLEY I 2,381,184

REINFORCED TEXTILE FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING Filed Nov. 23, 1943 4Sheets-Sheet 3 OOOOOO Aug. 7, 1945.

ca. K. RIPLEY 2,381,184

REINFORCED TEXTILE FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKING Filed NW. 25, .1943

4 Sheets-Sheet 4 7 7' I I I V L/ A2 3 4 8Y5 K INV NTOR.

Patented Aug. 7, 1945 REINFORCED TEXTILE FABRIC AND PROCESS OF MAKINGGeorge K. Ripley, Troy, N. IL, assignor to Troy Blanket Mills, Troy, N.H., a corporation of New Hampshire Application November 23, 1943, SerialNo. 511,422

4 Claims.

This invention has to do with the manufacture of fabrics and materialmade up of unspun textile fibres.

Basically in its simplest form it is a reinforced textile fabric made ofa, batt of textile fibers, usually formed by a carding machine into asheet of substantially uniform thickness and evenness, folded back andforth on itself with a plurality of reinforcing threads which runparallel with the side edges of the batt or sheet. Preferably the fabricis passed through a, needling machine to fasten it more firmly togetherbut it may be held together by pressure or sizing, or by treating thethreads with an adhesive.

In a needling machine, there is no shuttle and the resulting fabric isnot woven by criss-crossing the warp threads with filling threads. Asnowmade, there' is usually a back bone orfoundation layer of woven burlapor similar material in which the warp threads and the filling threadsare interlaced while a sheet or batt o'f unspun By a textile fibre ormaterial, I include whatever can be carded such as sisal, ramie, cotton,wool, asbestos, etc.

I am awarethat similar sheets of unspun fibres have been reinforced bypositioning relatively widely spaced threads lengthwise as in patent toHawley, No. 340,667 of April 27, 1886, and I am aware that lateralthreads or wires have been laid between two webs as shown in patent toYoung of January 19, 1943, Patent No. 2,308,849. I am also familiar withthe construction-such as shown by J. Offermann and T. Jegler of November20, 1883, No. 288,726, in which there are two or more woven layers, thethreads of which are at Various angles making a criss-cross effect.

Preferably my material or fabric is needled toether in a manner similarto the showing of Rasch, Fibrous fabric, September 20, 1910, No.970,950, on a needling machine which might be similar to one describedby W. H, Wagner, Patent No. 1,326.236, of December 30, 1919, on Needlingmachine.

This invention is in the product, in the machinesfor making the productand in the process. The product is a fabric such as described above, ora material in which it is a part, made up of For clearness, the Wordsbatt or sheet" of textile fibres mean what comes from a card; reinforcedtextile fabric means such a sheet, with threads parallel with its edgeswhich reinforce it both folded back and forth in a zigzag manner; andlaminated textile material-means such a fabric combined with otherlayers of "sheets V which winds it up with criss-cross, diagonal reinoneor more layers of such fabric, or with one or more sheets of unspunfibres and, positioned between them, a plurality of longitudinalthreads.

forcing threads imbedded in it.

As a convenient way to make my product, I use what is known in the tradeas a camel back lapper which delivers the sheet of fibres onto suchapron from a garnett carding machine to which the unspun stock is fed byany of the well known feeds. y

:This garnett card is set on one side of the longitudinal feed apron andthe delivery speed of the lapper is so proportioned ,as to be muchfaster than the speed of the longitudinal apron so that when thedelivery rolls of the lapper move laterally across the longitudinal feedapron, this sheet or layer will be laid diagonally in a manner similarto the well known Scotch; feed between the units of a set of woolencards.

This sheet after it is laid forms a zig-zag pattern with more or lessoverlapping of the folds as desired.

On the side of the longitudinal apron opposite from the gamett card is ayarn creel which carries spools or bobbins for the desired number ofreinforcing threads. These parallel threads are fed in between thedelivery rolls of the moving delivery apron of the lapper and aretherefore incorporated in and become substantially part of a zigzaglateral sheet of fibres. The width of the assembly of threads is lessthan the Width or space between the edges of the zigzag or lateralsheet, and the width and number of, threads may vary according to thefinal result desired.

The reinforced fabric thus formed with its imbedded threads can be. usedfor some purposes without being rolled or folded. Preferably, its

folds and threads are needled together to form a stronger fabric or,without needling, it can be carried along by the longitudinal apron to awinding head which forms it successively into rolls on beams each ofwhich can be removed to be used in a second step to make a laminatedtextile material, or the fabric may continue with other layers of sheetmaterial and of threads in a single step process.

When two steps are used, the next step is to place a beam with a roll ofthis reinforced textile fabric on suitable bearings over the feed apronof a needling machine, with the end of the fabric resting on the feedapron or on a sheet of textile fibres which is not folded and notreinforced.

A beam carrying a plurality of longitudinal threads is then placed inbearings and its threads are guided between the reinforced fabric and alongitudinal sheet of textile fibres, the end of which rests on thereinforced fabric, and which is carried by a beam in suitable bearings.One or more longitudinal batts can be positioned on or under thereinforced fabric.

The longitudinal batt or batts, the reinforced fabric with reinforcingthreads and the longitudinal threads are unrolled together by the feedapron of the needling machine and by a final wind up'roll and are causedby them to pass under the multiple needles of the needling machine, theneedles of which force the loops and fibres from the face of the topbatt down into and if necessary through the bottom face of the bottombatt thus binding all the layers of the laminated material together.

The basic improvement which I have made and which I call the foundationfabric is a batt or sheet of textile fibre with a plurality of lateralthreads bothlaid down in a zigzag pattern. It may or may not be needledin that condition or it can be used without needling or it may form oneor more layers with other layers all needled together to form alaminated material.

Two or more re-inforced sheets, with or without needling, can be used.

Substantially all the drawings are diagrammatic because the thinness ofthe material and the merging together of the layers make it difficult toshow anything in proportion.

As most of the machines shown are old, the drawings merely indicatetheir construction with the new parts if any shown more in detail. Thedrawings show the product, the process and the processes.

In the drawings, s

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the reinforced fabric.

Fig. 2 is a similar view of the fabric after being needled.

Fig. 3 is a detail of chine.

Fig. 4 is an isometric lation of the threads to a needle of a needlingInadiagram showing the rethe batt.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a fabric slightly different from that shown inFig. 1 and ly different from Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a. plan view with parts broken away of one of my laminatedtextile materials.

Fig. 8 is a greatly exaggerated sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig. 7 ofthe material shown in Fig. 7 but with two extra sheets of fibre.

Fig. 9 is a plan view showing one arrangement of the machines employed.

Fig. 10 is a substantially diagrammatic elevation from the delivery endof the machines shown in Fig. 9 with the wind up roll omitted.

Fig. 6 of one slight- Fig. 11 is a detail of the feed rolls for thelateral threads.

Fig. 12 is a detail view showing part of a needling machine.

"iFig, 13 is a side elevation showing diagrammatically the arrangementof the parts in the second process wh'ere the second process is used,

Fig. 14 is a view similar to Fig. 13 showing another arrangement andFigs. 15 and 16 are diagrammatic plan views showing other arrangementsof the various machines to produce diiferout results.

The first step or process in making my fabric A or the laminatedmaterial M in which it can be embodied is to provide a sheet or batt oftextile fibres of uniform consistency and thickness. Such a sheet F ispreferably made by a garnett card G or by a card of any other type.

Thefibres may be dumped into a card feed H for a garnett card G of anywell known type and when delivered by the card delivery means, they arecarried up and along and then laid back and forth from side to side orlaterally on a longitudinally moving apron. At the same time, aplurality of what I will call lateral threads are fed in with thelateral sheet to produce the fabric shown at AinFig.1toFig.9. i

As the slatted feed apron E moves longitudinally, the lateral sheet F islaid down in a. zig-zag or diagonal course and the lateral threads Hfrom a creel J are laid with it. Fig. 9.

l represents one edge and 2 the other edge of sheet F. See Figs. 1, 4and 5.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 4 these threads are laid on one face and as thefold comes back with that same face, the threads cross each otherdiagonally but do not interweave. The amount of crossing depends on thewidth of the sheet F, the speed of the longitudinal apron and the speedof laying laterally and also on the number and width of the plurality ofthreads H with reference to the width of lateral sheet F.

If this assembly was merely wound up on a beam such as 40 or if it wassqueezed by pressure rolls, it would form what I believe to be a newfabric A which is useful for some purposes.

The threads H can b treated with some sortof adhesive or sizing Or thewhole formed fabric can be sized and will hold together and will beuseful for some purposes.

I prefer to pass the fabric through or under the needles 55 of aneedling machine N whereby loops and fibres ID of the sheet and of thethreads are forced perpendicularly from one face of the fabric into thebody of the material thereby looking it together as shown in Fig. 2, atO. i

While my fabric such as A might possibly be produced by hand or in someother way, I prefer to start with a garnett card indicated by G with afeed box I I of the Bramwell type. This is of the weighing type anddelivers to the garnett card G, which is shown as having a main cylinderI2, workers l3, and doffer I4. The stock is picked up from doifer M onits delivery apron I! by a camel back lapper L of the type known in theThis lapper L includes an elevating spiked apron I I which receives thestock from the doff er l4 of garnett card G and carries it up on to asecondary apron i8 which is so made that its delivery end can riSe upand down to accommodate the back and forth movements f the deliveryaprons 3 and 4 which travel over the delivery rolls 5 and 6 deliveringthe lateral sheet F from between them to the assembly of thread rolls20, 2|,

22, and 23 which unwind a plurality of threads H from a creel J, thesethreads being merged with and imbedded in lateral sheet Fso that theyare both laid across the delivery apron E and-form the basic fabric A.Figs. 1, 2, 4, and 5.

As that apron E is moving at a relativel slow speed, this combination Aof sheet F and threads H is laid diagonally as shown in Fig. 4. As thereshown, the aprons 3, 4, and E are so timed that at thesides of thefabric sheet A there maybe onlytwo thicknesses but in Figs. 1 and 5,there are four thicknesses. The fabric sheet A is wound up on a beam 40which can easily be removed.

The width of the assembly of threads H is shown as less than the widthof the sheet F but there might be sufficient of these lateral threads toextend almost entirely across the lateral sheet F, as see Fig. 5, or thewidth of their assembly mightbe substantially less.

The second step of the process is as shown in Figs. 12, 13, and 14.These show a needling machine N with a frame 50 which is provided with afeed apron 5i driven by rollers 52 and 53. It has i a battery of needles55, 55, carried by a holder 56" 'reciprocated by an arm 51 in a mannersimilar to that shOWn in patent to Wagner, No. 1,326,236. A beam 40carrying the fabric sheet A is first partly unrolled and an end of thesheet is laid down on feed apron 5i the beam being carried by suitablebearings 4| on frame 50. Next a beam 42 carrying a plurality oflongitudinal threads K is placed behind suitable bearings 43 the threadsK going under a guide 44. Then abeam 45 with a longitudinal sheet orbatt B of evenly spread fibre is placed behind suitable bearings 46 andthe end of batt B is placed on threads H and on fabric sheet A.

This is shown in Fig.-13 and the materials are shown in Fig. 7.

The fabric A and longitudinal threads K and longitudinal sheet B arecarried under the needle members 55 of the needling machine N and to thewind up roll 41 so that there will be, as shown, first the fabric sheetA, then the longitudinal threads K and then the longitudinal sheet B.

As these pass under the needles of the needle loom, the needles ardriven into or through the whole or part of the layer thus holding thewhole fabric together by forcing loops and fibres it], ill, of thematerial and some of the threads vertically, or at right angles to thetop or bottom face of the material, into the body of the materialthereby looking or tying it together as laminated textile material R.

lateral sheet F and threads H but forming a similar basic sheet A.

Fig. 6 shows two sheets of fabric A A, which after passing the needlingmachine N are needled together to form the laminated material P.

Fig. 7 shows a laminated material R made up of a fabric sheet A with thethreads H and lateral sheet F, then longitudinal threads K and a batt B,

the whole being needled together. as indicated to form R.

In Fig. 8, the laminated material S is made up of a bottom sheet or battC, then the fabric sheet A, then longitudinal threads K, then a sheet Band then a top sheet D; These are all needled together forming thelaminated material S.

As indicated in Fig. 16, four sets of fabric A may b laid one on top ofthe other by a battery of lappers and these can pass through the needingmachine N to form a laminated material T. In this case the four garnettcards GI, G2. G3, G4 are set in a row with their lappers Ll, L2, L3, L4on one side of an apron V and four creels J I, J 2, J 3, J4 are set in arow on the opposite side of apron V. The four layersof sheet fabric andlateral threads are carried along through a needling machine N andbecome the laminated material 'I' and are wound upon any suitable win uproll or beam 18.

As shown in Fig. 15, the two processes of combining and making laminatedmaterial such as P, R, S, or T with longitudinal threads such as K aswell as lateral threads such as H can be made continuous by connectingup the garnett, lapper and creel of the first process with the needlingmachine of the second.

The feed apron such as E can be combined as W with the feed apron 5| ofthe needling machine N or it may deliver to that apron. One or moregarnett cards such as G each with its lapper U and in place. of a creel,such as J, any other device for supplying. parallel longitudinal threadssuch as a. warp beam or back beam 6| can be p0- sitioned on each side ofan apron such as W and there may be one or more layers such as Aincluding the lateral threads while other layers are folded diagonallywithout the threads, or there may be numerous other combinations offoundations sheets like A forming part Of a laminated material includingstraight longitudinal batts and one or more sets of longitudinalthreads. In fact the number of combinations is very large.

I claim as the basis of all these the zigzag batt or sheet laid with thelateral thread whether needled or not needled. v

Instead of a lapper of the type shown at L known as the camel back, alapper such as shown at U in Fig. 15, known in the trade as a Blamire"can be used, or one known as a stationary lapper. In every case one lapis or several laps running side by side are carried and laid across afeed apron such as E or 50 and the lateral threads can be fed in anyconvenient way provided they go along with and on one face of a sheet offibre.

It is obvious also that any of the fabrics such as indicated not only byA but by P, R, or S can be used with the needling omitted because thenature of the unspun stock used may be such that the sheets will clingtogether. For many purposes a mass of laminated material will holdtogether without needling.

In speaking of an unspun textile material, it is usually such a materialas is delivered from a card or carding machine in the form of a flatsheet but such a sheet may be of greater or less thickness and it mightbe produced by some machine other than what we know as a card or agarnett card.

I claim:

1. A laminated textile material made up of a flat rein orced textilefabric having a top face, a bottom face, ends and substantially parallelsides made of unspun textile fibres and a plurality of lateral threads,comprising a lateral sheet of unspun textile fibres folded diagonallyback and forth between the sides of the fabric and a plurality oflateral threads substantially parallel with the edges of and positionedon one face of said sheet; a plurality of longitudinal threads which donot penetrate and which are parallel with the sides of and which rest onone face of said fabric; and a longitudinal sheet of unspun textilefibres extending between the sides of the fabric and over saidlongitudinal threads.

2. A laminated textile material made up of a flat reinforced textilefabn'c having a top face, a bottom face, ends and substantially parallelsides made of unspun textilefibres and a plurality of 30 lateralthreads, comprising a lateral sheet of unspun textile fibres foldeddiagonally back and forth between the sides of the fabric and aplurality of lateral threads substantially parallel with the edges ofand positioned on one face of said sheet; a plurality of longitudinalthreads which do not penetrate and which are parallel with the sides ofand which rest on one face of said fabric; and a. longitudinal sheet ofunspun textile fibres extending between the sides of the fabric and oversaid longitudinal threads, the material embodyin in its structure loopsand fibres of said sheets and of threads carried vertically from a faceof the material into the body of the material.

3. The method of making a laminated textile material, having a top face,a bottom face, ends and substantially parallel sides which consists offolding a sheet of unspun textile fibres diagonally ck and forthlaterally together with a plurality of lateral threads which areparallel with the edges of the folds of said sheet; of laying aplurality of longitudinal threads on one face of said fabric togetherwith a longitudinal sheet of similar material and of forcing loops andfibres of the material and of the threads perpendicularly from one faceinto the body of the material.

4. A laminated textile material made up of a flat reinforced textilefabric having a top face, a

bottom face, ends and substantially parallel sides made of unspuntextile fibres and a plurality of lateral threads, comprising a lateralsheet of unspun textile fibres folded diagonally back and forth betweenthe sides of the fabric and a plurality of lateral threads substantiallyparallel with the edges of and positioned on one face of said sheet; aplurality of longitudinal threads which do not penetrate and which areparallel with the sides of and which rest on one face of said fabric;and a longitudinal sheet of unspun textile fibres extending between thesides of the fabric and over said longitudinal threads; and

-35 other means to hold together the reinforced textile fabric and thelongitudinal sheet with the longitudinal threads between them.

. GEORGE K. RIPLEY.

